Intesa chairman says sale of bad loan unit won't take long

VERONA, Italy, Feb 10 (Reuters) - Intesa SanPaolo expects a partial sale of its debt collection unit won’t take long and looks with particular interest at Sweden’s Intrum Justitia, though China’s CEFC is also interested, the Italian bank’s chairman said.

Bowing to regulatory pressure to speed up the reduction of bad debts, Intesa is looking to sell a majority stake in its bad loan unit together with a large portfolio of soured loans.

“It won’t take long ... we’re confident though it’s a complex operation,” Chairman Gian Maria Gros-Pietro said on the sidelines of the Assiom-Forex banking conference.

He confirmed a press report that China’s CEFC could be interested in the business, but added: “Intrum has a lot of experience and it’s a partner we are considering with very great interest.” (Reporting by Gianluca Semeraro, writing by Valentina Za,)